The UN agency in its UNFPA state of world population report themed “The power of choice: Reproductive rights and the demographic,” revealed that 148.8 million Nigerians are under the age of 25.

But the figure is not in consonance with those of the National Population Commission (NPC), which stated that Nigeria’s population was at 198 million as early as April 2018.

NPC chairman Eze Duruiheoma had said this in New York while delivering Nigeria’s statement on sustainable cities, human mobility and international migration at the 51st session of commission on population and development.

“Nigeria remains the most populous in Africa, the seventh globally with an estimated population of over 198 million,” Duruiheoma had said.

According to the UNFPA report, 44 per cent of Nigeria’s population is aged 0 to 14, while 32 per cent are aged 14 to 24.

The UNFPA report disclosed that Nigeria has one of the highest fertility rates in the world, with less than 20 per cent of married women in urban communities using a modern contraceptive method.

In rural communities within the country, less than 10 per cent of married women use a modern contraceptive method, UNFPA added.

“No country can yet claim to have made reproductive rights a reality for all. Choices are limited for far too many women,” the report read.

“And this means that there are still millions of people who are having more—or fewer—children than they would like, with implications not only for individuals but also for communities, institutions, economies, labour markets and entire nations.”

Meanwhile, the nation’s population is expected to double between now and 2050.